Jareth's Queen
by Ahava247
Summary: The untold story of the King of Goblins' bride.
1. Chapter 1: Prologue

**Prologue**

The golden haired child was a marvel indeed. She was sitting on her bedroom floor babbling primarily to herself, playing with a baby doll. Narrowed owl eyes watched her from an open window sill taking in the scene. Drawn unexpectedly toward the infant girl the owl cocked his feathered head to one side, and with a ruffle of his magnificent plumage took off from his perch on the sill.

All at once the bird was caught in a pillar of smoke and with a bright flash of golden light the bird was gone. In the owl's place stood a human man, wearing a most peculiar expression. His wildly uneven toe-head was cocked to one side as the owl's had been a moment before. A small, almost indiscernible smile was on his thinly seductive lips.

The child was startled for a moment. She froze, unblinking and gazed awe-struck up at the stranger's face. The stranger held out an open hand as his lips spread into a delighted smile. "Hello there, sweet heart." He had spoken so softly it was barely audible. He grasped her tiny hand in his and kissed it ever so gently.

He gazed into the startled aqua blue eyes of the child. She was lovely. A perfect china doll. Her shining golden locks hung in tangled ringlets halfway down her back. Her sweet mouth pouted in her perfect, white, porcelain face in an undecided expression. In a tiny voice she asked, "Would you like to see my dolly?" She had decided to like the kind stranger. She held out her doll to him in a gesture of friendship…

On the other side of the child's bedroom door her mother listened to her little girl as she played. The mother had been tidying up a bit before she prepared to take her daughter for an afternoon walk. When they returned from their walk it would be time for Daddy to come home from work. Then the little family of three would sit down to a summer dinner of grilled corn on the cob, steaks, and watermelon.

Suddenly a prickling sensation of unease swept over the child's mother. Where there had been a child's babbling and laughter a moment before, now there was silence coming from her daughter's bedroom. The mother stopped dusting and listened with baited breath for a moment. Relief swept over her as she heard the tiny voice of her baby say, "Wanna see my dolly?" Her relief was shattered as the question was followed immediately by, "Otay mister. I be good girl."

In an instant the mother burst open the painted bedroom door to find the room empty of anyone save her child and herself. A faint smell of roses and sweet smelling smoke hung in the air. The curtains were sucked out of the open window as if someone had just left. They sparkled faintly with iridescent glitter.

Puzzling over this strange appearance of the usually clean window sill the mother thought, _"But that's impossible!"_ The room was on the second story of the large three story house. One would have to be mad to have climbed the thorny rose vine that crept up the side of the white frame house. Climbing back down would have been even more impossible.

Dismissing the idea that anyone other than an angel could have been in the room with her baby the child's mother smiled to herself and turned away from the open window. The bright eyed little girl observed all this but continued on with her childish imaginings.

* * *

><p><strong>***Author's Note:<strong> PLEASE PLEASE read and review. Let me know what you think of my work. The more positive response I receive from readers the faster I will post new materials. Also, I intend to add a few steamy romance scenes so I've decided to keep ratings at T.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Izzy! Come help me cook dinner please!" Her mother yelled from the kitchen. Izzy grudgingly got up from her seat on the overstuffed couch in the den where she had been watching her favorite movie, _Labyrinth_. "Coming, mom!" She replied loud enough for her mother to hear, before mumbling under her breath. "You never let me finish anything. Always want me to do chores and clean and cook. Never let me go to parties like other girls…blah blah blah.." She quickly kept quiet to keep her mother from over hearing her tirade as she shuffled into the kitchen.

A pot of water filled with peeled potatoes simmered on the stove. Another pot bubbled with the rich, exotic smell of curry. Izzy immediately began peeling onions to sauté in a frying pan, while her frazzled mother attempted to feed the baby. The baby was turning his head every which way, spitting out the baby food his mother was trying her best to feed him. His hair was matted with mashed peas. Mother sighed in exasperation, finally giving up, as Izzy added the sautéed onions along with cauliflower to the curry broth.

"Isabella, why must you always day dream?" Her mother's inquiry came as a shock to Izzy. "Look at you! You're cooking dinner in a medieval gown!" When Izzy wheeled around to face her mother she saw an expression that said mother was only half chiding her. It was true that Izzy's choice of clothing for the day was strange. She was wearing a medieval, satin, costume gown that she had worn for her 9th grade school play of _Macbeth_ the previous year.

_But in all fairness,_ Izzy thought, _I was rehearsing lines all afternoon in preparation for trying out for this year's production of 'The Merry Wives of Windsor.'_ At least she'd been rehearsing before she got side tracked watching her favorite movie. She couldn't help it if David Bowie's seductive smile and skin tight pants drew her to the television like a moth to a flame, she reasoned to herself. And besides, there was something oddly familiar about the character of the Goblin King in the film, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Izzy smiled sheepishly at her mother and finished making supper. She felt bad that she didn't help out around the house as much as she should lately. She knew mother was tired and stressed from dealing with the baby. And at 16, Izzy was perfectly capable of having dinner on the table when father got home from work.

Though at frequent intervals she felt she could relate to Sarah's feeling like a slave in the movie. Like Sarah, Izzy had been an only child until a year and a half ago, when her mother got pregnant again. The pregnancy was a surprise to everyone, but still the family was happy. Since then Izzy had had to do extra chores around the house to help out. Her baby brother, Samuel, or Sammy as everyone called him, was becoming more and more of a handful the closer he got to his 2nd birthday. She supposed they didn't call it "The Terrible Two's" for nothing.

But unlike Sarah, Izzy did not resent her baby brother. Nor were her parents divorced. She was grateful that she didn't have a step mother that resented her, like Sarah did. She knew her mother loved her as no other could, even if she did harp on Izzy occasionally.

Izzy continued to compare and contrast herself and Sarah as she spooned the finished curry stew onto heaping plates of rice and set the dining room table, while her mother cleaned up Samuel's mess of mashed peas. "I'm going to change my clothes so I look presentable when your father gets home," mother announced. "Please keep an eye on Sammy for me." Mother left the room before Izzy could reply. The table was set and the kitchen was cleaned of its food mess. There was nothing left to do but wait. Izzy removed the now clean high chair tray and scooped up the squirming toddler in her arms.

"Let's go play outside for a while, Sammy." Izzy cooed to the boy. Her brother responded enthusiastically with contented baby gurgles. She slid open the shining glass door to the back porch and strapped her brother into the infant swing on the backyard swing-set. She swung the baby high in the air, pushing the swing gently as it swung back to its start. Sammy squealed excitedly. Izzy cooed to her brother to keep him entertained but once again found herself dwelling on the _Labyrinth_ film. She began to tell the story to her brother as he swung back and forth.

True, the movie was beyond her time, having been released in 1986, the very year that Izzy had been born. Izzy loved the movie nonetheless from the first time she saw it. She was 9. She had been invited to her first slumber party at a friend's house. She remembered sitting spellbound as she watched the film along with the 7 other girls at the party as they lounged on sleeping bags and pillows on the living room floor. It seemed so long ago to Izzy's mind. And yet it didn't.

_What must it be like to have to find one's way through the Labyrinth_, she thought? _Better still, what must it be like for someone like King Jareth to love me? _She pondered silently.

"Izzy!" Mother called from inside the house. Izzy answered immediately as she stopped the swing and pulled Sammy out of the seat. She hastened inside and slid the sliding door shut behind her. As she did so she noticed a common, tawny, barn owl perched on top of the wooden swing set.

How long had it been there? It's strange that the animal should show no instinctual fear of humans to have landed so near to where Izzy and her brother had been a few moments before. A magnificent creature he was though. Izzy admired him through the glass. She had always been fascinated by birds of prey for as long as she could remember, especially owls. A strange feeling of familiarity came over Izzy. Was it her imagination, or did the owl seem to be studying her too?

"Izzy?" Mother called her name serenely. Izzy turned to see her mother walking into the kitchen. "Izzy, father just called from work. He has another late night meeting at the office this evening and can't get out of it, so he won't be home in time for dinner. He says he'll be home late tonight. So what do you say we go ahead and eat dinner together, huh?"

Izzy simply nodded in reply and shifted Sammy onto her other hip. Her mother's voice had been cheerful enough, but Izzy knew her mother well enough to know it was a front. She could see rims of red around the older woman's eyes, despite the makeup that had been applied to cover them. Mother had been crying. The woman took the baby from Izzy and headed into the dining room. Izzy chanced a glance at the swing-set. The owl was gone.

Later, that evening after the supper dishes had been cleared away Izzy lay on her bed thinking of the owl. Had it only been her imagination that he was studying her? Perhaps the bird hadn't really been there at all. Perhaps Izzy had been day dreaming again, wishing the owl from _Labyrinth_ would be there. Oh well, no matter. She had other things to worry about.

Her mind drifted to her poor mother. Father was still not home, though it was well after 10 o'clock. His claim of having a late meeting was the 3rd one this week. Mother was upset and fretful all evening. Suddenly the front door slammed. Izzy jumped in fright. She heard heavy footsteps on the staircase. Father had finally come home. The bedroom door down the hall from Izzy's room opened and slammed the next instant.

"_Where_ have you been? What took you so long?" Further still down the hall Sammy began to cry in protest. "Oh great! The baby's awake!" Mother yelled at her husband. Her father yelled in reply and the inevitable argument ensued. Izzy rolled over, covering her head with a pillow in attempt to block out the noise.

"I wish I could just tune them out..I wish, I wish.." Izzy muttered to herself on the verge of tears. She hated when her parents argued. She closed her eyes and willed herself to keep from crying. She silently cursed her overly sensitive nature. It was then that she realized she heard only silence. Then she thought she heard a voice in her mind say, _"What's said is said. Be careful what you wish for."_

Izzy sprang upright in bed thinking something terrible had happened to her family. In her panic she longed to hear her parents' voices again. She longed to hear Sammy and know he was alright. Immediately she heard her parents yelling, and Sammy crying as they had been before, but oddly her father was in mid sentence. It was as if someone had muted them, as one would mute the TV, then turned up the volume again, catching only half the conversation. How strange.

Sammy cried harder. He was on the verge of hysteria by this point. Immediately Izzy got up and went to him. She picked him up from his crib and cradled him gently, rocking him, humming softly until he quieted. Her parents' argument was coming to its end, but she could still hear snippets of the conversation. Her father had been working overtime all week in attempt to stay in good graces with the finance company he worked for. Tonight he had been let go. The company was collapsing and could no longer afford to keep so many employees.

_So THAT was what the argument was about._ Izzy had known it would be about finances or money. Her parents' arguments almost always were. She gazed down at Sammy's now sleeping face. His little fists were clenched, one of them in his mouth. The toddler looked so peaceful when he slept. Izzy laid him gently back in his crib. She watched her sleeping brother for a moment, then feeling the chill of the night air on her neck she moved to close the open window and draw the shade down. She left the room without a second glance not noticing the owl, once again perched on top of the wooden swing set.

* * *

><p>Izzy slept fitfully that night. She tossed and turned, feeling as though she were falling down an endless dark hole. She hit the bottom suddenly, but landed unexpectedly on her feet. There was only solid rock behind her, but in front of her was a widening tunnel. A stream of golden light beckoned at the other end. Izzy walked toward the end of the tunnel and found herself in a marble hallway.<p>

The hall seemed to glitter as she curiously made her way to whatever lie in wait on the other end. Feeling much like Alice in Wonderland she muttered, "Curiouser and curiouser," in an attempt to humor herself, Something small and round was floating down the tunnel toward her. Was it some kind of bubble? No, it was a floating crystal ball, the size of a tennis ball. Unsure of what to do, and having no place to run from it Izzy merely watched fascinated, as the ball seemed to grow larger and envelope her entirely.

Suddenly Izzy found herself standing in an immaculate white marble ballroom. The room was filled with people in various masques, as if at a masquerade. She looked down to see her pink floral pajamas melt away to an elaborate, floor length, ball gown of white, eyelet lace. Her ash blonde hair was piled high on her head and bejeweled with lace appliqués. Crystal droplets hung from her ears. She looked and felt like Cinderella.

All eyes were on her in envy and admiration. She looked truly lovely. The crowd silently parted before her. Izzy was suddenly face to face with the most handsome man she had ever seen, and she had seen her fair share of attractive guys. At school any number of boys stumbled over themselves in effort to get her attention, but she was never interested. This man was different.

He held out his open palm for her hand. She gave her hand obligingly and he gently kissed it. "Welcome, my love. I've waited a very long time for this moment," he spoke softly. Izzy's thoughts seemed to stop altogether. She could not think, nor did she want to. All she wanted was to be here, in this mysterious hall with this man who seemed to love her.

The man's narrow, brown eyes sparkled. Faint smile lines crinkled at the corners of his eyes, enhancing his high, rounded cheekbones in his finely carved face. He pulled her close to himself and stared down into her eyes. Izzy felt herself melting at his gaze. Somehow she _knew_ he truly did love her. But she could only stare in wonder at him. Was it possible for her to love him in return?

The two began to waltz around the ballroom as the crowd parted further still to make way for the dancing couple. Time seemed to fade away as they danced. Izzy realized she had never even asked the man his name, but the name was in her mind before she could ask the question. Jareth. That was his name. Jareth, High King of the Goblin Realm. But the people in the elegant hall weren't goblins, were they?

Izzy glanced around and began to see masques falling away from the faces of the wearers. Hideously twisted goblin faces of various shapes and sizes gaped back at her. Izzy screamed and pushed away from this King of Goblins. She turned in circles, frantically looking for a way to escape and seeing none. She screamed all the higher. "I wish there was a way out of here!"

All at once she was falling, falling endlessly down another dark tunnel and into… Into her own bed? Izzy started awake for a moment. She sat up trying to remember where she was. Seeing the dark shadows of her own familiar bedroom drowsiness overcame her.

She felt herself drift back into blissful sleep. Gentle kisses covered her face and neck. Such sweet, soft sensations they were. A tender, warmth spread over Izzy in her sleepy haze. She pulled her eiderdown comforter over herself, feeling as if she were truly covered in its soft feathers. Somewhere in the distance, she heard the soft hooting of a barn owl.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Then he said, 'Baby, let's go back to my place,' and I was like, "WTF? You don't even know me and you asked to me come home with you?" The doe-eyed girl rambled on about the previous night's experience of some creepy guy who tried to pick her up at a college frat party.

Izzy wasn't listening. She tuned the girl out along with the noisy din of the crowded bar. The booming techno music and flashing strobe light was giving her a massive migraine. The drunken laughter coming from the guy sitting on her left made her skin crawl.

_What am I doing here_, she wondered? She took in the heavily made up appearance of those seated at the table around her. The girl speaking was pretty, but hidden beneath layers of makeup. Her dark eyes were ringed with mascara smudges and her lipstick had all but come off on her martini glass. Her dark hair was streaked with bright red dye and meticulously crimped in sections, while having left other sections hanging straight. Izzy found herself fascinated with the girl's appearance.

Feeling eyes on her she looked up to see her friend Collette glancing her way. "You're uncomfortable," she said. It wasn't a question. Izzy just nodded slightly and looked away though Collette continued to address her. "Come on," Collette said wearily. She gestured that the two should leave. They edged their way out of the round booth they'd been sitting in, shoving those seated at the table out of their way. No one minded.

Collette grabbed Izzy's hand and pulled her through the crowded bar toward the door. They hurried past a couple passionately, and a bit drunkenly making out at the billiards table. A fat grey-bearded, older, drunk tried to pinch Izzy's rear end as she passed. She didn't stop to protest. She simply wanted out of this sleazy place.

The two girls made their way to the sleek double doors at the bar's entrance. Izzy burst through the door, taking in great gulps of cold night air into her lungs. She welcomed the cold. It was a refreshing change from the stuffy, cigarette smoke filled air of the bar.

"I'm sorry I brought you here," Collette apologized softly as she fumbled in her purse for her car keys. "I should have known you wouldn't be comfortable in there. I just thought it would be a way to unwind and relax after studying so hard for mid-terms. I didn't know there would be so many sleazy people. Adam told me the place was brand new and I thought we could check it out."

The sleek modern, techno bar had opened its doors only two months ago. From outward appearances it looked like a good hang out for yuppies, frat boys, and young professionals looking to unwind. Unfortunately, the majority of people who frequented the establishment were far from the yuppie college crowd.

"It's ok, Collette. I'm just not very much fun in that kind of atmosphere," Izzy challenged. The girls climbed in the dilapidated yellow Neon and headed back to the small apartment they shared with two other roommates.

"I'll just be happy when finals are over and we can go back to being happy college grads, Izzy enthused. Finally, after a long 4 years she was finishing her B.A. degree. Where she planned to go from there was anyone's guess. Collette agreed with her.

"Congrats, graduating class of 2009!" Collette boomed. "But I've no idea what you're going to go with a degree in psychology, when it obvious that you're more at home in a Shakespearean theatre or library, reading the classics. Maybe you should start a Master's program in Performance Arts." She looked sideways at her friend in the passenger seat.

Izzy simply shrugged. She didn't feel like having that conversation just now. She wanted to curl up in her bed with a good book and mug of cocoa. She'd do anything to silence the bitter, agonizing loneliness that bubbled just below the surface of emotions.

Collette knew what she was thinking but chose not to speak. She turned back to keep her eyes on the road as she drove.

Hard as Izzy tried she couldn't keep her mind from thinking of the day 3 years ago when she'd gotten the phone call that had shattered her world. Izzy had been staying at a friend's house out of town for the week. Her friend Meredith had called Izzy out of the blue, inviting her to stay with her at her grandmother's cabin in the mountains for a week in the summer.

She and Meredith had been inseparable in their elementary school years, as they had both been only children with no other siblings to play with. Then Meredith's dad was offered a job out of state and the family had moved away. However, since Meredith came back every summer to see her grandmother she tried to make it a point to see Izzy every once in awhile.

When they were unable to visit she kept in touch via email. Though their friendship had changed considerably now that both girls had graduated High School and completed one year of college at separate schools, they still felt a sisterly affection toward each.

Izzy was happy at Meredith grandmother's summer cabin. The elderly woman had always welcomed Izzy with open arms and treated her as her own granddaughter. Izzy and Meredith spent all week waking with the dawn and picking wild blueberries in the woods.

Izzy loved the fresh pine smell that lingered beneath the trees. She loved the golden glow of the sun as it shone through the thick canopy of the trees. The girls stayed out late long after the sun set every evening to watch the lightening bugs appear. The peaceful sound of chirping crickets lulled them to sleep when they finally went to bed.

Though she was no longer a shy 10 year old, but a mature 19, she always felt like a child again in these woods. Once when Izzy had fallen asleep in the afternoon sun by the stream deep in the woods she awoke to the feeling of eyes watching her. She looked around to find no one there, but Meredith sleeping peacefully next to her on the ground. The birds were her only audience, one tawny barn owl in particular.

Izzy had smiled to herself and went back to sleep. She liked to imagine it was _her_ owl, the one she had seen on the swing-set in her own backyard years before. Since then Izzy always felt safe and protected in these woods. Nothing could harm her here. At least that was how she felt until that earth shattering phone call changed everything.

It was on the last night of her stay at Meredith's grandmother's cabin. Izzy was preparing for bed when her cell phone rang. She didn't recognize the number on the caller ID so she ignored the call.

A few minutes later the unknown number reappeared on the caller ID as the phone rang a second time, crooning, _"Gravittttyyy, stay the hellll away from me. Ooohh ooh, gravittttyyy has taken better men than meeee.."_ The John Mayer song replayed again and again until she answered the phone.

"Hello?" Izzy was cautious.

"Isabel Allain? Are you Isabel Allain? Daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Allain?" The masculine voice on the other end inquired.

"Y..yes," Izzy replied tentatively. "I am Isabel. May I ask what this is about?"

"I'm officer Adam Yahze, the voice said. I understanding you're staying at a friend's house. We're sending a few officers to your friend's home." His voice lowered. "I'm sorry to inform you that your… that your parents and brother have been in an accident. The man sounded apologetic. Just then Meredith's grandmother called to her up the stairs.

"Izzy, my dear. There're some police officers here who want to talk to you."

Izzy had barely had time to react. Her mind was numb with panic and fear. They only sent police to your house when someone was dead if you didn't brake the law, didn't they?

Izzy remember how Meredith and her grandmother had sat with her, holding her hands and trying to comfort her as the policemen bluntly informed her that her parents, and 8 year old brother, Sammy had been killed instantaneously in a head-on collision with a drunk driver on their way home from the movie theatre. It was a stormy night and the blinding rain had made it hard for her father to see the road. By the time he realized another driver was careening toward their car it was too late.

For the next year Izzy was numb with grief. She lost interest in everything. She went back to school, determined to finish her degree. She rented a small apartment with Collette, her roommate from the previous year, and two other girls who split the cost of rent.

Hoping her mother would be proud of her Izzy threw herself into her studies, rejecting all invitations to social events. She was straight A student, with a 4.0 GPA. Now here she was at 22, about to graduate with no idea of what she wanted for the future. Maybe Collette was right, maybe she should get a Master's degree in Performance Arts.

The feel of Collette's hand on her shoulder brought Izzy back to the present. Collette parked the car on the curb in front of the apartment. "We're home."

Izzy got out of the car, and without a word marched straight to her bedroom, not even bothering to peruse the pile of mail on the kitchen table to see if any of it was for her. She pulled on a t-shirt and a pair of sweat pants and climbed into her queen size bed.

She realized in the last three years, while she had done everything to avoid thinking of her family's death she had forgotten to really grieve. Now the pain was catching up with her.

Determined not to think about it anymore tonight she grabbed her favorite novel off the night stand and eagerly dove into its pages. If only she had someone who loved her as Mr. Rochester loved Jane Eyre. If only she could love that someone the way Jane loved Mr. Rochester in return.

She closed the book for a moment, keeping her place with her finger, and thought of the dream she had had when she was 16. She wondered about Jareth, the Goblin King as he had been in her dream.

He had a handsome face and those eyes! His eyes held the wisdom of a millennia and so many emotions when he had looked at her. Too bad it was only a dream. Men like that did not exist in real life. Neither did goblins or magic. And too bad the romantic dream had turned into a terrifying nightmare. Oh well.

Izzy got up and went into the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea. All lights were off in the apartment and the kitchen was dark. Three of her roommates had gone to bed for the night. The fourth had gone out with her boyfriend since it was their 2 year anniversary.

Izzy had to fumble around on the wall to find the light switch. She flicked the light on and grabbed a teapot from under the cabinet, filled it with water, and put it on the stove to boil. Collette often teased her for not simply microwaving the water the way most college students did, but Izzy preferred the taste of properly boiled tea. Then She realized she'd forgotten her book on bed in her room.

She padded back down the hallway to her room and froze in her tracks. A tawny owl was sitting on the window ledge outside her window, looking directly at her.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Izzy was unsure of herself. She stood in the doorway to her bedroom gaping, open-mouthed at the beautiful barn owl. His gaze did not flicker for an instant as he gazed, smolderingly back at her. His intention was clear. He wanted her to let him in.

Izzy quickly walked to the window, but her hand hesitated on the lock. "I'm going to let you in," she told the bird. "But no funny business, ok? Just promise to behave yourself."

She knew it was ridiculous to be talking to an owl, asking it to behave himself. It probably wasn't even the same owl as the one she had seen that day on the swing set. She was sure the bird just wanted to come in out of the rain. When the rain stopped he would fly out again in search of a mouse or squirrel to make a meal of.

Izzy unlatched the lock, shoved open the window and quickly backed away in fright waiting for the bird to flutter into the room. She heard the gentle rustle of feathers then covered her face, cowering against the wall. She kept her face protected, hoping the owl wouldn't scratch or peck at her.

After a few short seconds when nothing happened Izzy slowly uncovered her face. The smell of sweet smoke filled her nostrils immediately, as if someone had been burning sage. To her surprise when she opened her eyes Jareth, The Goblin King, stood before her, watching her cautiously.

For a moment, Izzy couldn't find her voice. She could merely stare dumbly at him as he smiled softly at her.

"Don't be afraid of me," he said gently. "I realize that the last time we met it was not a pleasant experience for you. I am truly sorry about that." His eyes spoke volumes. They said that he truly _was_ sorry for having frightened her when last they met in what Izzy had thought was only a dream. "Things did not go as smoothly as I had hoped."

He moved ever so slightly closer to her. Izzy stood spellbound. Jareth slowly moved his hand as if to touch her face, but then lowered it. Suddenly she found her voice. All the emotions of the last few seconds came bubbling to the surface.

"Who the _hell_ do you think you are?" She screamed accusingly. "You think you can just come in here acting all mysterious and expect me to be head over heels? Did you think I would fall at your feet and beg you to take me away with you?"

She hissed through clenched teeth so as not to awaken the other girls in the apartment. "You… you… you inconsiderate, pompous, bastard! Izzy's nerve was rapidly unraveling. Then all at once she was crying and shaking uncontrollably. Her knees began to give out as images of her parents flashed before her eyes unbidden.

Jareth caught her before she hit the floor and guided her to her bed. She backed away from him against the headboard, drew her knees up and wrapped her arms around her knees, resting her head on them as she cried.

Jareth watched her in silence, his face etched with deep concern, but he let her cry. Izzy did not think he would force her. She would get the truth from him eventually, if her life depended on it. Izzy slowly lifted her tear-filled eyes to meet his.

"You killed my family, didn't you?" She whispered so softly Jareth barely heard her. He answered truthfully.

"No. I could not save them." He blamed himself for being unable to do so.

Izzy knew he spoke the truth. His eyes told her that if he could have saved her family from death he would have. Intuition told her that whatever his intentions were toward her, he would never lie to her.

It seemed the Goblin King was a man of his word. He put his head in his hands in grief. Could he be grieving for her family? She silently studied him for what seemed a long time.

He really looked nothing like David Bowie had in _Labyrinth_, except for the hair. The shocking, blonde, lion's mane of a haircut was unmistakable. Also like Bowie, he was dressed in black from head to toe, minus the tights that revealed the curve of his… package. In fact he was dressed as an impeccable 18th century gentleman. Izzy noticed that even his nails were manicured.

Hesitatingly she reached out a hand to touch his arm, wanting to say so much but not knowing what to say. He raised his head in shock and gazed at her with a mix of quiet admiration and pain. They stared at each for what seemed an eternity. Suddenly the teapot whistled angrily, startling them both.

Izzy jumped up and ran to the kitchen, barely noticing that one of her roommates had been startled awake by the sound.

"Izzy, what the…?" She heard a loud boom coming from one of the bedrooms down the hall. The awakened roommate must have knocked something off her nightstand in her fright and gone back to sleep.

Izzy swiftly dug around in the supply drawer for a pot holder, gingerly picked up the scalding teapot from the stove burner. She poured two mugs of steaming, orange ginger tea and padded back to her bedroom to find it vacant. Jareth was gone. In fact Izzy wasn't sure he had ever been. Her room looked exactly as it had before he arrived, immaculate.

Izzy stood holding the two mugs of hot tea as she took in the sight of her vacant bedroom. She nearly scaled herself with the hot liquid as she set both cups down on her night stand. The intoxicating smell of the orange and ginger enticed her.

Her memories of the past few moments were fuzzy. Had she imagined the whole scenario? She sat back on her bed, slowly sipping her tea, thinking over the events of the night from the time she had left the bar with Collette to now. She could not remember anything aside from making tea and reading Jane Eyre. But why had she made two mugs of tea?

Izzy puzzled over the matter until she could no longer hold her eyes open.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Raindrops drizzled on the windshield turning the world into a swirl of mystifying colors. Izzy stared at the bokeh effect the rain made on the windshield when the traffic lights suddenly turned green. The cab driver turned the corner and glided onto the main highway. It had been another disappointing evening for Izzy. Another awful, blind date.

A co-worker had set Izzy up with her boyfriend's cousin. Rachael, Izzy's co-worker had made him sound like a dream guy. He turned out to be well past his expiration date.

He was 32, with a circle of baldness on the top of his furry brown head, a large pot belly, and chipped, yellow teeth. So looks weren't everything.

What did he do for a living, Izzy inquired? He replied that he only had a high school diploma and worked at sewage plant. He dropped out of high school in the middle of 9th grade year to hang out with pool buddies and smoke pot. Not exactly Izzy's idea of the perfect date.

She had been polite, hoping there was more to him then what he seemed. Instead he had spent all evening talking about his disgusting job at the sewage plant. He made rude jokes, snorting uproariously at his own sense of humor.

Tto make matters worse, he had ordered her dinner for her without even letting her look at the restaurant menu. It was the same thing he had ordered for himself, veal chops in red wine sauce over linguine. Nevermind that Izzy was a vegetarian.

Izzy moved the veal chop aside to pick uninterestedly at the linguine. She tried not to look as her date managed to splatter more of his linguine down the front of himself than get in his mouth. What he did manage to eat he chewed with his mouth open like a cow chews cud.

Izzy looked away in disgust and drank long sips from her wine glass. Even the wine was cheap and mediocre. When the guy had cleaned his plate he asked with a mouth still full of food, "Yow gownah eet thaht?" He gestured to the untouched veal on Izzy's plate.

Izzy mutely shook her head and watched as he learned forward over to the table to take the veal off her plate. She downed the remainder of her wine in one gulp and politely excused herself from the table claiming she had to make a trip to the ladies' room. She hadn't returned to the table, but had walked straight out the front door to hail a taxi.

Now as she headed home she couldn't help thinking what was wrong with her. She was 25. Had a degree in psychology and a Master's degree in Dramatic Arts. Immediately after finishing her Master's she had landed a job working at a small set design studio that doubled as a theatre so she could hone her acting skills in her spare time. She loved playing Shakespearean or Elizabethan roles, though no one ever came to see the performances the little theatre produced except for nerdy college kids and professors who couldn't afford to go to a more upscale theatre.

She was attractive, wasn't she? She had a good job she enjoyed that paid the bills, though it didn't leave her with much money to burn on trivial things. She had saved enough to purchase a small loft apartment overlooking the vegetable market in the artsy side of town. She was young. Twenty five wasn't old age, after all.

So why then did everyone seem to think she would be a perfect match for their cousin or brother or friend who always turned out to be middle aged and balding with a less than mediocre job and no goals for future? So much for the idea of romance in her life.

She felt like crying. She had no real friends who cared anymore. Her college friends had either married and were starting families or getting divorced already. No one stayed in touch. Izzy had tried to keep in touch. She called or emailed occasionally to say hello and leave her number but her messages were never returned.

The last time she had seen Collette by chance one day last winter, Collette had been distant and left in a hurry. And she hadn't heard from Meredith since the day of her parents' funeral.

After the funeral Meredith had decided she wanted nothing more to do with Izzy because being around someone who had no family "was depressing." Izzy never felt more alone than she did at that moment. Silent tears rolled down her cheeks as the taxi pulled up to the street corner in front of the vegetable market. She hastily wiped them away as she paid the cab driver and got out of the cab. She stood in the drizzling rain watching the yellow cabbie disappear down the road.

It was a cold night. The rain was turning to sleet. Still Izzy stood on the curb long after the cabbie had dropped her off. She didn't feel like walking up the stairs to her loft. She was in no mood to answer Mrs. Venti's questions, the wife of the elderly Italian man who owned the vegetable market.

Ironically Izzy had thought that living in the city would make her feel less alone, less exposed and vulnerable since she'd be constantly surrounded by traffic and noise and people. She was wrong. She realized tonight that she was more vulnerable here than she had ever been going up in the country.

She missed the small, white, framed house she had grown up in with its wooden swing set in the back yard and rose trellis that reached the second story window of the room that had been hers as a child. But like everything else in Izzy's life it too was gone forever. After her family's death the house was taken by the state for taxes. Someone had bought it a year later only to tear it down to build an apartment complex.

_I wish…_ She thought, wallowing in her misery. _I wish I didn't have to be so utterly alone tonight._

The pool of tears that had settled in her eyes spilled over onto her rosy cheeks. Her face, which was flushed with cold, was streaked with rivulets of frosty tears. How much time had passed since the cab had dropped her off? Oh well, it didn't matter.

She was unaware that an owl perched on the street lamp above her head watched her with interest.

A gust of wind whipped by, sending chills down Izzy's spine, breaking her from her sad reverie. She pulled her wool coat tighter around herself, climbed the back stairs to her apartment above the market.

She took extra precautions not to make even the tiniest of noises so as not to disturb Mr. and Mrs Venti. Izzy didn't think she could bare their knowing, sorrowful glances and invasive questions tonight.

When Izzy reached her door she dug in her purse for her keys for a moment before giving up and reaching for the spare underneath the doormat. To her surprise a familiar figure stood waiting for her as she entered. He had not aged a single day since their last meeting on another rainy night three years before. His eyes sparkled as he took in her expression but he said nothing.

In the instant that she saw Jareth's face the memory of the last time they had met came flooding back to her. In a matter of seconds Izzy's pale face registered shock, recognition, anger, and finally acceptance. She was actually glad to see him. She would have been glad to see anyone so she didn't have to be alone. She thought even a cat burglar would have been welcome company tonight.

"You wished that you didn't have to be alone tonight." Jareth spoke first. "So here I am. Hate me or love me as you will, what's said is said. It cannot be taken back."

Izzy impulsively ran into his arms. She hugged him hard and buried her face in his chest, just grateful for companionship. Then realizing who she was hugging backed away from Jareth just as quickly as she had run to him.

Jareth simply laughed. It was a carefree laugh, free of judgment. His eyes danced as he watched her. "Don't you trust me by now?" He asked quietly. "You know I would never hurt you. I've watched over you since you were a small child."

Out of nowhere he pulled a crystal orb, then another, passing them back and forth in his hand.

"Let me show you." Izzy watched as one orb floated delicately in thin air.

Inside she saw an infant, no a blonde haired toddler playing with a doll. It was her! Izzy was watching herself as a child. The little Izzy was talking to herself while a tawny owl perched on the window sill observed her. The owl flew in the tiny bedroom, transforming into Jareth in a flash of light and smoke. He told her she had fascinated him. He was attracted to her spirit. He told her to be a good little girl and in return he would watch over her always, as her protector.

The image in the orb changed to a 5 year old Izzy spinning in the back yard, the sunlight shining in her long, free-flowing hair. The tawny owl watched her from a tree branch as she spun around and around. Izzy spun until she made herself dizzy and collapsed on the ground in a fit of giggles. Slowly as she watched the scenes in the crystal orb the memories came back to Izzy. She stared transfixed.

Again the image in the orb changed. This time the owl watched through a window as a crowd of 9 year old girls lounged on sleeping bags watching the movie _Labyrinth_. The owl was fixated on the starry-eyed expression of 9 year old Izzy, who lay on her stomach with her hand propped under her chin.

Then 16 year old Izzy pushed baby Sammy on the swing in the back yard, telling him the story of the _Labyrinth_. Another change and Izzy was in a white, eyelet, gown dancing with Jareth in a marble ballroom. The horrible faces of the goblins Izzy remembered were not fear inducing, but rather admiring. The goblin subjects watched with adoration as she danced with their King. They seemed to know everything about her.

The first of the orbs darkened to blackness as it finished its memories. Jareth floated the second of the orbs in its place. This time it depicted the horrible night that Izzy learned of her parents' accident.

The owl watched the whole scene through the window. After 19 year old Izzy cried herself to sleep that night the owl pecked a hole in the screen of the open window and flew in to be near to Izzy in her grief. Transforming into his human self, Jareth stood inches from the foot of the bed watching the sleeping girl, speaking words of comfort into her dreams. His shoulders sagged with heaviness as he seemed to take her grief upon himself. His face was a masque of sorrow and longing.

Once more a similar scene had repeated in the crystal orb, but Izzy was slightly older, perhaps 20. Finally, the last scene the orb displayed showed Izzy on the last night Jareth had come to her, the week before her final exams three years ago. Speechless, Izzy slowly looked from the darkening crystal orb to Jareth's expressionless face.

"Do you see now?" He spoke softly. "I've loved you from the time you were a small child. At first I felt only a brotherly affection for you, a desire to protect the fiery spirit I saw in you. Over the years my feelings for you have grown into something... deeper."

He stepped closer toward Izzy, his intense eyes never leaving hers. Before Izzy knew it his face was barely an inch from hers. She didn't move. "Isabel, my love," he breathed. I've waited 1300 years to find you, love you, make you my Queen." By now Izzy was could barely breathe. She stared into those fathomless eyes and waited, surrendering herself to him.

He gently kissed her, running his fingers in her tangled hair. She let him kiss her and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her full body weight against him. Jareth's hands groped beneath her coat, pulling it off of her. In an instant they were grabbing at each other's clothes in effort to undress each other.

Izzy's breath came in quick sighs as Jareth's kisses moved from her mouth to her delicate throat to her breasts. He let her go long enough to finish undressing himself, taking in Izzy's breathtaking appearance. She stood in her sheer, pale, pink, lace bra and panties trying to catch her breath, apparently in shock. Then she was in his arms and he was carrying her down the hallway to her bedroom.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"How you turn my world, you precious thing." Jareth whispered as he stroked Izzy's bare back with one finger as she slept, swirling a half drunk glass of red wine in his other hand. He planted the lightest of kisses on her neck, placed the glass down on the nightstand next to the bed and was gone.

Sunlight streamed through the open bedroom window. A soft breeze rustled the sheer white curtains. The weather had decided not to rain today. Izzy stirred at the soft feel of the breeze on her bare skin. She opened her eyes trying to remember what had happened last night. She couldn't.

She dreamed of Jareth, the Goblin King all night. She dreamed that he had come to her, confessing his love for her. They had made passionate love to each other.

The moment he kissed her she was inside his mind and knew his thoughts, and he hers. She _knew_ he loved her with every fiber of his being, as she now realized how she loved him. Every sensation or emotion she felt was his as well as her own. They were truly one.

But it was only a dream. It was a beautiful dream, but a dream it was nonetheless. But then why was she naked?

It was then that she saw the half finished glass of wine on the table beside her bed. Oh now she remembered. She had come home depressed after her disappointing blind date and drank glass after glass of wine 'til she felt more than a little frisky. Then she had fallen asleep in the nude.

She sat up rubbing her eyes sleepily. "Oh!" She gasped. Her head swam. She hadn't bothered to keep herself hydrated with water along with the wine last night. Now she was paying for it. She had the worst hangover since her freshman year of college.

Pressing a hand to throbbing head, willing the pain to stop, Izzy rolled over onto her back. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand. It read 8:45 am in glowing green figures. _Shit!_

Izzy bolted out of bed, grabbing a washcloth from the towel rack in the bathroom that adjoined her room. She was going to be late for work if she didn't hurry. She sponge bathed quickly with the dampened washcloth and hurried to dress.

She opted for her "go-to" outfit that she wore whenever she was pressed for time. Wrinkle-free, black, dress, pants with a blouse of layered, sheer, voile. The blouse was the palest shade of pink with cap sleeves. She hurried to fasten a wide black belt around her waist, then threw a long string of pearls around her neck, knotting it in the middle. At the last possible moment she gargled mouth-wash, swishing it around in her mouth. She brushed her teeth with a dry tooth brush, grabbing her purse as she hurried out the door.

"Taxi!" Izzy yelled as she burst down the stairs out onto the sidewalk. Immediately a passing taxi turned around for her. Even with her face free of makeup she was strikingly beautiful. She climbed into the taxi, quickly digging her makeup bag out of her purse.

"The corner of 5th and Main," Izzy huffed, breathlessly, running her fingers thru her long hair. The cabbie nodded once heading in the direction he was told.

Ten minutes later Izzy walked into the small room which served as her office prepared to face the music. But no one noticed she was late.

"Get that prop off the stage!" Someone yelled as they passed her office. People were hurrying everywhere setting up props and tearing down others. Izzy cleared her desk and began working on the set design concept she had been thinking of for days.

"Do you have the final script from Joe? You know, the modern rework of Hamlet?" A skinny, hawk-nosed man poked his head around the side of the office door to address Izzy.

"Sure thing. Joe handed it to me last night before I left," she replied cheerfully. "One sec." She opened the top left-hand drawer to her desk, pulling out the stapled script.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" The man yelled over his shoulder to whoever had spoken to him out the door. He grabbed the script out of Izzy's hand, nearly tearing the first page and ran out the door. A second later he popped his head in again. "Thanks, Iz." He grinned and hurried off.

Izzy smiled to herself. Nick was a good guy. He was a hard worker, who was also a good listener when he found the time to be. Usually their boss, Joe kept them both running in circles. Nicky served as errand-boy most of the time. Izzy, on the other hand, was second only to Joe, the company owner. The struggling theatre and set design company was small, but it was Joe's baby.

He bought the place several years ago as a pet project that instead, had become a full time job. Izzy did everything from photocopying images to editing scripts to designing set layouts. It was an interesting place to be considering her undergraduate degree was in psychology.

However, it also gave her the occasional outlet to perform if she so desired. Most of the time she worked behind the scenes, opting to act only when she felt no other actress could do a part justice. It was highly stressful, but she loved her job. Joe was a good boss. Just then a carrot redhead woman with cat's eye glasses rushed into Izzy's office.

"I hear you walked out on Dave's cousin," she accused in a nasally voice. It was Doreen, the co-worker who had set her up with her boyfriend's cousin.

Izzy looked her pointedly in the eye and shrugged. "He was a terrible date," She said honestly.

"Well, if you ask me…" Doreen continued.

"I didn't ask you," Izzy countered. She kept her voice calm and collected. She was in no mood to listen to Doreen's excuses about what a good guy he was at heart. Izzy braced herself, expecting an argument.

Instead Doreen leaned forward right in Izzy's face and lowered her voice. "Honestly, thanks for being a good sport. I really only set you up as a favor to Dave. He's been trying to get that _boy_ to go out on a date for the longest time." She said the word with particular contempt. No that he was a child at all, but only behaved like one.

"But he has the _worst_ manners! Just between you and me, no _wonder_ Max has been dateless for so long. He's terrible!" She winked at Izzy as she turned on her heel and walked off.

* * *

><p>Several hours later after the company had settled down a bit, Izzy found herself restless. Her tummy growled hungrily. There'd been no time for her usual morning ritual consisting of a cup of black coffee and a cheese croissant at the local diner that kept her going 'til dinner time. It was after 5pm and she was starving.<p>

She realized she hadn't eaten all day. Hunger on top of a massive hangover was definitely not a good combination. By now the hangover had subsided since Izzy had been downing glasses of water all day to stay hydrated.

She stood up at her desk as Joe popped in. "Hey Iz, its nearly 5:30. You hungry?"

"I'm starving," she confessed.

"Wanna grab a bite with Kris and I?" He asked, peering at Izzy over his spectacles. He ran a hand through his salt and pepper hair. "We were thinking of going to the Starlight Café for dinner. Care to join us? Kris would love to see you," he said, referring to his wife, Kristen. "And it'd be my treat."

Izzy thought for a moment. She really was fond of Joe and Kristen.

Joe's poor wife of 35 years had been diagnosed with advanced Multiple Sclerosis the previous year. She was wheelchair bound and didn't get out much. Despite her debilitating disease she was always cheerful whenever she saw Izzy.

Izzy wasn't sure she wanted company tonight, but then remembering how miserably alone she'd been last night she agreed to come along. "Sure. Why not?"

Joe's face lit up in delight. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed his wife, while Izzy finished up her paperwork.

"She's agreed to join us Kris," Joe spoke sweetly to his wife. "Alright darling. We'll be there in a jiffy. Bye." He hung up the phone. "Grab your coat, Iz." Izzy laughed with the realization that she had forgotten to grab a coat in her rush to get out the door that morning.

* * *

><p>The trio was seated at a large table in the back of the restaurant, overlooking the marina. Kristen's wheelchair fit snuggly at the table. Sailboats docked in the harbor made for a lovely backdrop against the setting sun, despite the chill of the evening.<p>

Joe had made Izzy ride with him to his home where he picked up his wife, Kris, rather than having Izzy meet them at the Starlight Café. From there the three of them had ridden to the restaurant in Joe's car.

"Isabel, my dear you look wonderful." Kris greeted Izzy with a fashionable kiss on one cheek. Her brown eyes glowed. She adored Izzy as if she were her own daughter. She smiled a sweet smile and asked Izzy how her day had been. Joe cut in before Izzy could reply, teasing that he had worked Izzy like a slave, whipping her whenever she got out of line. Izzy laughed and went along with it.

"Oh stop it, Joe. Let the girl answer for herself." Kris raised her hand, pretending to slap her husband. Joe caught her hand, planting a kiss on the palm. The couple gazed adoringly into each other's eyes. It was clear they were still as much in love as they had been on their wedding day.

Izzy watched them with a twinge of envy. How much she wanted to grow old with someone and be as happy with him in her old age as Kris was with Joe.

The waiter arrived to take their order. He filled their water glasses, as he offered a selection of wines. Joe chose a bottle of a full-bodied rosé. Izzy ordered roasted cauliflower-leek soup with cashews, a side of fragrant Jasmine rice, and a small green salad from the vegetarian menu. Joe and Kris opted for the Chilean Sea bass; Joe's spiced with paprika and cumin, with a side of mashed potatoes. Kris was content with only a side salad to accompany the fish.

Conversation was pleasant all evening. Joe was particularly attentive to his wife, fearing that she might be in pain or desire to retire early. Izzy shared his fear, but Kris assured them both good naturedly that she was fine. She chatted with Izzy contentedly 'til their food arrived. It was delicious! As she quietly sipped her soup from the spoon, Izzy found herself studying Kris.

She was every inch a lady of the highest caliber, Izzy thought. Always a kind word of praise for Izzy ready on her lips, Joe's wife was the type of woman who never let it be said of her that she treated anyone as inferior.

Kristen's thin frame showed no sign of the pain her disease caused her. She wouldn't have stood for it. Her thick, silver hair was knotted in a sleek bun at the base of her neck. Small, gold coin earrings dangled from her ears; a matching coin on a delicate chain was around her slender neck. She wore a knee length cocktail dress of chartreuse satin with only black mascara and deep red lipstick on her white, porcelain face. Izzy noticed tiny crow's feet and laugh lines around the woman's eyes and mouth. They only added to Kris's appearance, giving her a look of refinement. For 62 the woman looked amazing!

"Are there any special men in your life, dear?" Kris asked Izzy, breaking her out of her reverie. Izzy's mind was flooded with memories of the man she had spent her previous night with. The thought of his tender kisses on her naked body, the feel of him inside her, the fusion of their minds and beings left her with a sudden longing she knew was absolutely pointless. It had only been a silly dream.

* * *

><p>***Author's Note: I do apologize for the daily monotony of this chapter. It was basically a filler chapter. I do know where I'd like to go with the story line, but couldn't think of a way of tying it together with what's already written. Bear with me... the story will get more interesting. I promise.<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Izzy had eaten dinner out with Joe and Kris three nights a week for the past three weeks. She offered to pay her own way, even going as far as to pull out the cash to cover her meal. Joe was always insistent that he pay for her meals.

After all, it was he who had invited Izzy to join them for dinner every night at the request of his wife. Kris doted on Izzy. The woman seemed to know something about Izzy that she herself did not.

The first night Izzy had gone out to dinner with them Kris had asked if there was anyone special in her life. Of course Izzy had answered no, but she couldn't escape the glimmer of some sort of knowing in the older woman's eyes. It was as if she knew something, as if she could read Izzy's mind.

That night at dinner Izzy had thought back to the dream she had had the night before. She dreamed Jareth had come to her, loved her. The dream had seemed so real to Izzy she could almost feel his hand caress her face.

Jareth's passion filled eyes that had looked so lovingly at her when they'd spent the night together were burned onto her consciousness. Why was she tormented with "memories" of things that had never happened?

"No." She had answered apologetically to Kris' question. There was no one. "I'm as pathetically single as I've ever been." Not that she hadn't had past relationships. But none of them had lasted long.

She had laughed, deciding to tell them about her horrible blind date with Doreen's boyfriend's cousin. Joe and Kris laughed as Izzy humorously relayed the story.

"He looked more like a pig in a trough while he was eating!" She described her date's eating habits in vivid, revolting detail. Kris had covered her mouth with one hand, laughing softly.

"Oh, no… oh dear. Surely it wasn't that bad?" There were tears in Kris's eyes. Izzy nodded.

"Oh, it was!" Then the evening had ended on a happy note as they bid each other good night.

Tonight had also been an enjoyable evening, like every evening when Izzy dined with her boss and his wife. Izzy was beginning to feel spoiled and unworthy of their devotion to her. The conversation dragged as they got up to leave.

Joe eyed his wrist watch, "It's getting late, ladies. I think perhaps I should get my bride home before her strength is spent." He held out Kris' heavy wool coat for her to slip her arms into. Kris kissed Izzy's hand in farewell, since being wheelchair bound she could not stand to kiss her cheek. Izzy bent low to kiss the old woman on the cheek in farewell.

"Good night, dear Izzy. I'm sure the perfect man will find you when the time is right." She patted Izzy's hand. _What on earth had made her say that out of the blue_, Izzy wondered? Had she somehow known that Izzy was contemplating her love life, or lack thereof?

The trio walked out of the restaurant, going their separate ways. Izzy smiled, waving at the retreating couple as they drove away from the Café. She truly did love her boss and his wife. They were good to her.

She hailed a cab and climbed into the back seat rubbing her arms. She pulled her heavy winter coat around herself in effort to ward off the chill. Shivering, alone inside the frozen back seat of the cab her teeth started to chatter.

Izzy closed her eyes, leaning her head back against the seat. As they had a million times in the last three weeks her thoughts drifted to the wonderful dream of Jareth making love to her. Every time she thought of the dream it felt so real to her. It was as if she could actually feel The Goblin King holding her close after a night of incredible sex.

Izzy felt warm arms encircle her, holding her close. Her eyes fluttered open in an instant. Jumping, Izzy turned her head to see Jareth's smiling face looking back at her.

"Hello, my love." He kissed her the tip of her nose. "Sorry to startle you."

Izzy froze. "You're good at that!" She snapped harshly. "Why must you always frighten me? Why… Why do I have memories of encounters with you that never happened? And what the _hell_ are you doing here?" She was near to hysteria.

The cab driver glanced in the rear view mirror periodically to watch the exchange. A look of frightened bewilderment was on his face. There'd been no one but her in the back of his cab a second ago, hadn't there? He was in the middle of late night traffic. He definitely hadn't stopped to pick up anyone else.

Jareth laughed softly. "Think about it, Izzy. If you've never met me before then how do you know who I am? You seem to be awfully comfortable in my arms for a woman having a conversation with someone who doesn't exist."

Izzy was silent. How could she explain it to him? She turned away from him, facing the cab window with arms crossed.

Chuckling, Jareth teased her, "Do you have any idea how adorable you are when you're angry?" She ignored him.

When she didn't answer Jareth grabbed her chin with his free hand and forcibly kissed her long and hard. Her frozen posture didn't change. He tried again. He kissed her third a time, leaving her breathless when he finished.

He whispered something in her ear she couldn't quite make out, and suddenly the images of the dream came to her in waves. She remembered. It wasn't a dream. It _had_ been real after all. Tears streamed unabashedly from Izzy's eyes.

Jareth smiled softly at her, whipping away her tears with his thumb. He kissed her again, gently this time. And this time Izzy melted into him, passionately returning his kisses.

The grey haired, pot bellied cab driver watched the exchange in his rear view mirror with growing interest, one bushy grey eyebrow was raised. "Uhh… folks. We've reached your destination, but... I can… uh… drive around the block if ya want."

"No. Thanks, but we'll be getting out here." Jareth told the cabbie coldly in his softly accented English. He got out of the cab easily and helped Izzy out, slamming the door after her. He picked her up, cradling her like a child and disappeared without a sound up the stairs to her apartment.

"Hey! Hey, wait a minute! You forgot to…."

The cab driver had been about to say "pay," when suddenly in his gloved hand appeared the exact fare for the cab ride. The old man blinked and shook his head in disbelief. What a strange night he was having.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Izzy awoke with a start. She had dreamed that Jareth had spent the night with her again. She sat up and looked over at the sleeping figure lying next to her in bed just to make sure she hadn't imagined him.

She was so tired of being haunted by images of him, images she could not longer differentiate between real and imaginary. Izzy leaned over him and kissed his back. He stirred slightly.

Jareth lay on his stomach facing the wall, one arm hanging limply off the edge of the bed. His massive mane of choppy, blonde hair hung over his face. It was amazing how much like an average human man he looked when he slept, Izzy thought.

Only she knew Jareth was far from the average human. He was the immortal King of Goblins, with supernatural abilities Izzy had only barely glimpsed. What would it be like to really make a life with him?

Where would they live? Would he give up his kingdom for a mortal life with her, or would he take her to his world? Izzy's mind was spinning with the possibilities. She wasn't sure she could handle seeing his world. She'd glimpsed it once in a dream and it had been a terrifying experience for her.

No matter. Izzy knew one thing, and one thing only. She was madly, desperately in love with this crazy, surreal, King of the Goblins and she damn sure didn't care how insane the idea sounded. It did sound insane, though, even to her own ears.

But she also knew that Jareth had shown her his true character. He loved her more deeply than she had ever been cared for by anyone, with the exceptions of her mother, father, and brother. God, she missed them.

What would her mother say if she could see Izzy in Jareth's company? Would she think Izzy was mad to even entertain the idea of having Jareth as a boyfriend… a husband?

Izzy forced the thoughts from her mind. She only wanted to enjoy the feeling of waking up next to him for the first time. She was in shock that he hadn't left her in the middle of the night as he had the last time he'd come to her.

She'd been so angry at him for leaving her, making her think it was all in her head. Couldn't he see that even though he'd erased her memories of him as a way of protecting her, that her subconscious had held onto those memories? Couldn't he see that even though her mind could not remember him, her heart refused to forgot him?

But the moment they'd made love for the second time her anger at him had dissolved as their thoughts once again were supernaturally melded. His every thought, feeling, or emotion was hers. Hers were his.

He'd shown her his true feelings for her. Jareth had never meant to hurt her. He'd only wanted to protect her. That was all the explanation he'd given as the two of them became absorbed in the torrent of physical sensations during the act of exploring each other's bodies.

Izzy ran her hands over his skin, kissing the beck of neck. She ran her fingers through his hair. Jareth moaned softly in his sleep. She kissed nibbled his ear, "Good morning," she purred seductively.

Jareth stirred at her loving touch and slowly opened his eyes. He looked even more typically human in this moment than Izzy had ever seen him. He smiled and rolled over to face her.

He sat up, propping pillows behind his back and pulled Izzy against him. She lay with her head resting on his chest while he stroked her silken hair.

"Are you going to stay with me?" She asked him bluntly, not bothering to beat around the bush. It was the one question she feared the answer to.

Jareth took a deep breath and sighed, choosing his words carefully.

"Its alright. I'm used to relationships not working out." Izzy answered before he could say anything. She was surprised at the sound of her own voice when it cracked. Her eyes brimmed with tears. "You don't have to stay. But please don't take my memories of us together. Please?"

Jareth was grateful that she couldn't see the stony expression on his face. He continued to stroke her hair mechanically.

"Isabel… I am a king. You understand that means I have… responsibilities. I cannot stay with you now. As much as I want to I… cannot."

He took a breath to continue speaking, but before he had gotten any more words out Izzy was out of bed. Not bothering to wrap a sheet around herself she ran into the adjoining bathroom and slammed the door. The heavy sound of her sobs was clearly audible.

"Isabel? Izzy come out and let me talk to you."

Izzy heard Jareth's voice from the other side of the bathroom door. From the sound of it he was pressed against the door, waiting for any sort of response from her. Izzy ignored him.

Suddenly a thought struck her as funny. They could be any couple in a relationship having a typical lover's spat. How odd that the powerful Goblin King should be subject to the whims and emotions of a mere mortal woman. Izzy smiled to herself despite her tears.

"Isabel Allain if you don't open up this door and let me in I'll simply come in weather you wish me to or not. Then you will have to hear me out." He spoke sharply in a faded British accent. He had not raised his voice, but it was dark and menacing. If it had been anyone other than Izzy he had been speaking to they would be right to be terrified of him.

Izzy waited. In an instant Jareth appeared in front of her, now dressed in the black jeans he had been wearing last night.

Izzy was seated, crossed legged on the side of the porcelain bathtub, peering up at him through her hair. She felt his hand grab her delicate wrist and pull her up to stand in front of him. She complied.

He was a good foot taller than her, with a lithe, muscular frame and broad shoulders. Standing next to him Izzy felt like a small, fragile sparrow.

"Izzy, listen." He paused a moment. "As King I have certain duties I cannot shirk. I am not free to stay here with you whenever I choose. However, I _will_ come back to you. I give you my word. He paused a moment.

"Darling I would never abandon you. I want to marry you. I want…." He paused again.

Izzy hadn't moved. She stood in front of him, almost touching him, not daring to look at him. She hardly dared to breathe as she listened to his words. Her heart had nearly stopped. Had she heard him correctly? Had he said he wanted to _marry_ her?

Jareth's voice softened. "Izzy look at me." His hand came gently under Izzy's chin, forcing her to look up at him. He was staring into her eyes, willing her to understand him. She saw only his fathomless dark eyes, eyes so brown they were almost black.

"Izzy… I want you to be my wife, my companion for eternity, my queen… please say yes."

Izzy's eyes swam with unshed tears of disbelief. She couldn't find her voice. She could only nod her head, pressing her body against him. "Y….Yes!" She managed to squeal after what seemed like an eternity of silence. "I will marry you."

Jareth kissed her passionately, squeezing her tight for a split second before backing away. In his outstretched hand was a bejeweled pair of silver, bangle bracelets. They seemed to have appeared out of thin air.

"Platinum." Jareth told her. "Made from the finest platinum, mined high in the mountains of the kingdom of King Ladon."

Izzy kissed him again. "They're beautiful," she said softly. She could hardly believe they were for her.

"They are bewitched. In my world bracelets such as these are the appropriate gift for a bride to be. They are the bracelets of ownership, signifying that you belong to me as my fiancé," Jareth continued. After we are married they will be melted down to be made into a circlet for you to wear in your hair, or as a necklace, symbolizing our unity as man and wife in one body, one spirit."

He smiled at her and placed the bracelets in Izzy's open palm. "I will understand if you do not want to wear them. Though bracelets like this identify a betrothed woman in my world, slaves also wear bracelets as a mark of ownership, though hardly with the same meaning."

Izzy was shocked to hear that there was such a thing as slavery in Jareth's world. But she wouldn't let such knowledge spoil this moment of bliss. She studied each bracelet individually, while Jareth watched her face eagerly.

The bracelets were identical in every way. They were heavily and ornately carved with flowering vines of various sizes. Thousands of tiny pink and white sapphires in the shape of flower petals lay imbedded in the platinum. Each flower had a bright, golden topaz at the center of the petals. Tiny, deep green emeralds expertly cut to look like curling leaves and vines completed the floral motif.

"Oh, they're stunning!" Izzy exclaimed over the craftsmanship of her bracelets. "Of course I'll wear them." She slid one bracelet onto each wrist then craned her head back for Jareth to kiss her. He complied willingly. Izzy pulled away feeling a peculiar warmth spread throughout her body, starting in her wrists. She looked down at her bracelets with a puzzled expression on her face.

"As long as you wear the bracelets no harm can come to you. When I am not able to be with you the bracelets will protect you. As my bride to be and future queen they grant you the gift of immortality." Izzy looked from Jareth to her wrists, incredulous. His was face was serious but his eyes sparkled.

Jareth leaned down, planting a kiss on top of her head. "Now, my love, don't you think you should get dressed?" He moved to turn on the shower behind her. Hot steam filled the small bathroom with considerable heat.

"I will only if you join me," came Izzy's smart reply. Jareth chuckled and began unbuttoning his pants while Izzy pulled the shower curtain aside to climb over the side of the tub.

Izzy let the piping hot water run down her neck and back, soaking her hair for a split second. She heard only the sound of the water running and waited expectantly for Jareth to climb in after her. When he didn't she peeked out of the shower curtain to see if he needed anything.

He had disappeared.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Izzy cried until she could cry no longer. She stayed in the shower for a long time, letting the water wash away her pain. He had done it again. Jareth had left her.

At least this time he hadn't erased her memory of him. She still wore the twin bangle bracelets he had given her as an engagement present.

Izzy reminded herself that he'd given his word that he would come back to her. She knew that Jareth did not take his word lightly. She was comforted by the thought.

She studied her beautifully, jeweled bracelets for the millionth time since they'd been given to her nearly two hours ago. Jareth had asked her to marry him. He would never simply abandon her.

After all, she reminded herself, he had watched over Izzy since she was 2 years old. She was stupid to be so upset. She knew he loved her, but he had responsibilities. She was being selfish.

To get her mind off of it she decided to treat herself for a change. It was the weekend. She was free to do whatever she liked.

After she had dressed and dried her clean, wet hair Izzy decided to take a walk in the park.

It was a beautiful, early, spring day. Although still bitterly cold, the sun was shining in the clear, blue sky outside the apartment window. It was perfect weather for early March.

Could it really only have been three weeks since Jareth had first told her he loved her? To Izzy it was as if she been with Jareth her entire life. She smiled to herself at the thought. She corrected herself, unbeknownst to her at the time, she had been with him her whole life.

Izzy threw on her coat over her black cable knit sweater and headed out the door. Sunny days were a rarity in the city of Seattle.

More often than not the sky was overcast with a constant drizzle. She was not going to stay inside on such a day. It could be weeks before there was another clear day like this one. If only Jareth had stayed to share it with her.

Izzy forced all thoughts of him from her mind. She was determined to be happy today. It was her first day as an engaged woman. Soon she would be Jareth's wife and the happiest she'd been since before her family had been killed.

She stopped by the small vegetable market to say hello to her downstairs neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Venti. They could be annoyingly invasive at times, but the past three weeks had passed without incident.

Izzy thought it was only right that she be polite to them. They meant well.

"Good afternoon, Signore Venti," Izzy cheerfully greeted the elderly Italian man who was bending over a cart of fresh asparagus out front of the market.

"Ah… Signorina! What a lovely surprise! Good day to you!" Mr. Venti's face lit up like a Christmas tree light. "Tell me, dear, how have you been, eh? And where is that handsome young man you've been seeing lately?" He inquired nosily in heavily accented English.

Izzy was taken aback by the question. So _that's _why they'd left her alone lately. They'd seen her with Jareth. Were they spying on her?

"My fiancé is out of town at the moment," Izzy replied after giving it a moment's thought. She was happily engaged. Why shouldn't she share her joy?

"Fiancé! Oh, mio Dio!" The little man exclaimed, his eyes twinkling. "Katerina, Katerina, come hear what news Izabella has come to share with us," he called to his wife in the back of the market. "She is engaged! She a-gonna marry that nice young man we saw her with!"

A frail little woman in a floral print dress came hurrying out of the shop, her hands raised. "Oh, Caro il mio! Congratulazioni!"

The tiny, olive skinned woman hugged Izzy closely, planting a kiss on either cheek before releasing Izzy from her grasp. Izzy blushed. She should have expected them to make a fuss about the news of her engagement.

"But, eh…. Where iz-a your ring?" Signora Venti asked, her thick, caterpillar eyebrows knit together in confusion as she stared at Izzy's hands.

_Oh dear…_ Izzy thought with a sigh. She pushed back the sleeves of her heavy coat, revealing the beautiful, platinum bangles. Mr. and Mrs. Venti gasped, simultaneously, with looks incredulity on their faces.

"Such costly adornments, Izabella. He must _love_-a you, eh?" Signor Venti winked at Izzy, then said something to his wife in rapid-fire Italian. Mrs. Venti blushed, jumping slightly as her husband pinched her buttocks.

Izzy suppressed a giggle. "Grazi for the congratulations, Signor Venti. Signora," she acknowledged Mrs. Venti with a nod. "I really must be going now. Ciao!"

She hurried off as the couple went into the vegetable market, chatting animatedly in Italian. As she walked away she heard Signora Venti utter a line about something that sounded like "_folletto"_ in a disturbed tone.

Izzy made a mental note to look up the meaning of the word online the next time she checked her email.

* * *

><p>Upon leaving Signor Venti's vegetable market, Izzy had walked a block and half. The brisk spring air in her face had felt good. It left her face with a rosy glow.<p>

She window shopped as she walked, admiring things she would have liked to buy if she had any cash to burn. Regardless of whether she had money to blow or not, it was simply nice to be out and about, enjoying the sunshine, watching passers-by.

Realizing she was hungry, but not wanting to return to her apartment for lunch, nor having much cash on hand, she hailed a taxi and stopped at a local ATM teller.

From there she asked the cab driver to drop her off at Pike Market. The underground market was famous for its variety of food markets, restaurants, and artisanal craft wares.

Today the market was not so crowded, which came as a pleasant surprise to Izzy, as the place was usually flocked with tourists and locals.

Izzy stopped to buy a bouquet of fresh flowers before picking up a mushroom and potato piroshky at the Piroshky Piroshky bakery. She sat at picnic table outside the market to eat her piroshky.

The buttery, puff-pastry crust of the Russian delicacy flaked all over the front of Izzy's sweater when she bit into it. Mingled with the cloying sent coming from her floral bouquet the aroma was heavenly.

When she'd finished the piroshky she couldn't resist stepping back in the bakery to pick up another one, along with a cup of borsht to save for dinner that night.

Izzy got back to her apartment later that night, tired, but happy. She had successfully managed to spend the entire day exploring the city and hadn't succumbed to her longing for Jareth even once. She knew he would be with her if he was able to be.

The taxi cab pulled up on the corner in front of the vegetable market to let Izzy out. She climbed out of the cab holding her bouquet in one hand and turned back to get her to-go bag of piroshkies and borsht.

She paid the driver his fee. As the cabbie pulled away Izzy unmistakably saw Signora Venti peering, half hidden behind a curtain of an upstairs window at her. The old woman vanished instantly.

_Great. Spying on me again, is she? Nosy old busybody! _Oh well. She must have nothing better to do than watch the goings-on of her closest neighbor, Izzy reasoned. Let her spy. What harm could she possibly do?

Izzy unlocked her apartment door, setting the bag of food on the entryway table. A note, written on faded stationary had been shoved under the door.

She picked it up, holding it unopened in one hand, while she took off her coat, then set it on the kitchen table next to her unplugged laptop pc. She popped the borsht and one of the piroshkies she had bought earlier in the day in the microwave.

Then sitting down and turning on her laptop she shoved her thumbnail under the tape that held the note together and read:

Izabella,

I do not mean to friten you, but you must pleaze be careful. I do not want to be in your bizness, but I feel I shood warn you that the man you love may not be what he seemz. I recognized the bracelets you wore today from a old story mia nonna told me when I was litel girl. I think they are magia. I do nott noe what your fiancé tell you about his contry, but he is from magia place far from here. He cood put you in danjer.

Un amico sempre,

Signora Venti


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Izzy read and reread the note twice before the microwave beeped that the set time had finished. She debated going down the stairs to confront Mrs. Venti to discover how much she knew about Jareth exactly.

Was it simply an old grandma's tale that had led her to imagine she knew more than she actually did? Or did Mrs. Venti really have some knowledge of Jareth's world? Izzy wasn't sure.

But first thing was first. She decided she was going to eat her onion piroshky and borsht before she did any confronting. Her stomach growled at the enticing smell of the thick beet soup and puff pastry. She plopped a dollop of sour cream onto the steaming borsht and sat down to eat.

Since the borsht was too hot to sip yet, she took a bite of the piroshky and began to surf the internet. What was that word she had heard Mrs. Venti use earlier? Oh, yes, _folletto_. That was it.

Izzy typed the word into an online language translator. After a second it had automatically translated the Italian word to English. The word meant "goblin."

Izzy stared, open mouthed at her laptop screen. How could Signora Venti know that Jareth was the King of Goblins? She didn't think Jareth was a goblin himself did she?

Izzy panicked momentarily. Then she remembered that Jareth had said the platinum in her bracelet had been mined in the mountains of the kingdom a King Ladon.

Izzy quickly typed the word _Ladon_ into the translator. Two possible meanings for the name appeared. One was Old English, meaning a hill. The second was the ancient Greek name of a river god who was a hundred-headed dragon and the guardian of the garden of the Hesperides.

That could mean anything. Plenty of people named their children names with foreign or ancient meanings. Izzy's own name, Isabel, for example, was in fact the Spanish variant of the Biblical name, Elizabeth, or Elisheva in the original Hebrew. It meant "God is my salvation."

She mentally crossed off the possibility that this King Ladon was anyone particularly dangerous until she knew more about him from Jareth's description. Besides, she highly doubted there were such things as hundred-headed dragons from Greek myths in Jareth's world. Creatures from Greek mythology did not exist, right?

Then again, Izzy reminded herself that up until a few weeks ago she hadn't thought that goblins, or goblin kings existed either. Now she was engaged to be married to said, Goblin King. Izzy smirked. What were the odds?

She took another bite of piroshky, a small sip of borsht, and continued researching. The word goblin in English was originally barrowed from the Medieval French term, _gobelin_, according to , its meaning uncertain.

_Gee, that was helpful,_ Izzy thought. She continued her search. Stopping on a dictionary definition website she searched the term _folletto_. She came up with a definition that read that the origin of the word meant "mad," or "foolish." It was a term loosely used to mean "goblin," "imp," or "fairy," especially a supernatural being who is a survival in popular form of an ancient Etruscan or Roman deity.

_Hmm… interesting. It's a start,_ Izzy mused. The Etruscans were the ancient ancestors of the modern Italians from the Tuscany region of central Italy, right?

Signora Venti was born in Tuscany, she'd told Izzy on many a past occasion. Izzy took another bite of piroshky and placed it back on the white plate next to her laptop. She decided to narrow down her search to goblin legends of Tuscany.

* * *

><p>A pink mountain goat leapt from rock to rock as sure-footed as anything Izzy had ever seen. Izzy tried desperately to keep up with the animal. Apparently he did not want to be kept up with.<p>

"Wait! Good little goat, that's a good girl. Forgive me if you're not a girl, but I really need to follow you or I'll never get out of these mountains!" She called in as a soothing a voice as she could manage.

The lithe mountain goat stopped for a split second, turning to look at Izzy over its shoulder. It bleated happily and continued on its rocky path.

Izzy was scrambling over rocks as quickly as she could manage to find a steady rock to set her foot upon, which wasn't fast at all. She searched the side of the cliff face for jutting pieces of rock to grab hold of in order to keep from tumbling over the cliff's edge into the wide ravine below.

_Whatever you do, do NOT look down, Iz!_ Her attempt to mentally reassure herself was an epic fail. She was petrified. The how and why Izzy had come to be stranded in this treacherous mountain pass escaped her. She only knew she had to follow the pink mountain goat to find a way out of the mountains.

A large bolder lay ahead, jutting out from the cliff face. The goat easily leapt on top of it, poised as if to jump. It turned back to check that Izzy was following and took a flying leap from the boulder. In mid air the goat vanished, bleating a horrible suffocating sound as if it had been squeezed too tightly. Izzy wasn't sure but it looked as if something had simply snatched the animal out of the air! But that wasn't possible, was it?

She hurried after the wounded animal, telling herself it must have fallen. Izzy's hands were shredded and bleeding from climbing after the goat. She didn't stop to investigate the sound of tearing fabric that seemed all the louder to ears in this mountain pass, but quickened her pace after the goat.

Her dress had torn on a naked tree branch that grew in a haphazard angle from the side of the granite cliff. The animal was her only hoping of finding her way home. If she stopped now she'd never make it home.

"Little goat! Goat!" She called after the mountain goat. Just as she made it to the boulder, a hulking brown figure stepped around the side of the boulder into Izzy's path.

The creature was rather short, about 4 feet tall perhaps, with a skinny frame and long, blackened finger nails. Its head was bald and it looked grimy and unkempt, wearing only a pair torn pair of breeches.

A mountain goblin! Izzy didn't have to be told that it intended to hurt her. This breed of goblin would take pleasure in watching her suffer.

She screamed a high pitch scream only one afraid for their life could utter. But the scream that came out of her mouth was distorted. Rather than an endless shriek, it sounded instead like an electronic beep!

_Beep! Beep! Beep!_ The alarm clock in Izzy's bedroom was furiously announcing her wake up call.

Izzy's head jerked up in fright. She was disoriented. It took her a moment to remember where she was. She ran her fingers through her tangled hair and let out an exasperated sigh, realizing that she'd fallen asleep in front her laptop.

After hours of searching she still had gotten nowhere in her search for information on the goblin myths of Tuscany. The now empty borsht cup was turned on its side, the spoon hanging out. Piroshky crumbs littered the laptop keyboard.

_Great. What a dope I am. How the hell am I going to get puff-pastry flakes out of the keyboard? _She stood up to get a damp cloth and clean up the mess. Her legs and back were stiff from having been cramped, sitting in a kitchen chair all night.

She cleaned up the mess and went to turn off the annoying alarm clock. The clock was flashing 12:00 in an eerie green. The power must have gone out. Izzy flipped the light switch. No power. She checked the time on her cell phone. It was 3 am.

Her fuzzy brain was too tired to think anymore tonight. Not bothering to turn her "sleeping" laptop off, or change her clothes, Izzy climbed into bed. She pulled the eiderdown blanket up over head and immediately fell back to sleep.

The sound of her cell phone ringtone woke her the next morning.

"_She works haaaaard for the money, so haaaaard for it hoooney. She works haaaaard for the money so you better treat her right." _The Donna Summer song clip replayed twice before Izzy bothered to answer the phone. It was the ringtone that told her that her boss was calling.

"Hi, Joe." Izzy answered, speaking in a rush before Joe could get a word in. "Listen, I overslept and the power went out last night so my alarm clock didn't wake me on time. I'm really, really sorry. I'll be in as soon as possible."

"Izzy, don't worry about coming in today. I called to tell you that I gave everyone the day off today. The only people who will be coming to work today are the actors for the dress rehearsal for next week's performance of _A Midsummer Night's Dream._ The sets and scripts are finished. There's nothing more you need to do today. Kris is doing particularly poorly today so I'm taking the day off myself to be with her."

"Oh," Izzy breathed in shock. "Is there anything I can do for her? Can I bring something over, some soup perhaps, or something to ease her pain?"

"No, don't worry about bringing anything. But seeing you would put a smile on her face. Just bring yourself over and I'll order out lunch for the three of us. I'd cook, but I'm lousy at it so my wife won't let me." He laughed softly. "What do ya say, Iz?"

"Oh…uh. Ok then. I'll be there in about an hour or so. That alright?"

"Sure thing, Iz. You know how to get here. Kris'll be more than thrilled when I tell her you're coming for a visit. See ya then." The line clicked dead on the other end.

Izzy touched the "end call" button on her cell and pressed the sleek, black phone to her temple in momentary thought. She wanted to disobey Joe's orders and take something nice to Kris, but what? She decided she'd think it over whilst she showered, when the idea came to her.

Twenty minutes later, when she had showered and dressed in blue jeans and her favorite blue and white, nautical, striped sweater, and small, anchor necklace, Izzy sat down at the kitchen table to write.

Using her favorite floral stationary that she saved to use for thank you notes on holidays, she cleanly wrote out as many famous quotes on the topic of health as she could think of, from inspirational to humorous. When her memory gave out she searched quotes online, via her cell.

"_A healthy attitude is contagious but don't wait to catch it from others. Be a carrier."__Tom Stoppard_

"_I feel pretty good. My body actually looks like an old banana, but it's fine." ~ __Mike Piazza_

"_I have the body of an eighteen year old. I keep it in the fridge.__" ~ __Spike Milligan_

"_It takes more than just a good looking body. You've got to have the heart and soul to go with it.__" ~ __Epictetus_

"_A merry heart doeth good __like__ a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones." ~ Proverbs 17:22_

"_Doctors will have more lives to answer for in the next world than even we generals". ~ Napoleon Bonapart__e_

"_Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died". ~ Erma Bombeck_

When she had filled the large stationary sheet with as many quotes as she could fit cleanly on the page she folded the sheet in three's, much like a business letter, and placed it in an open envelope addressed to Kristen, leaving it unsealed. Then pulling on black leather boots, she grabbed her purse and walked out of the door to hail a cab.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Kris had been delighted when Izzy showed up for lunch at her boss's home. The elderly woman had laughed with tears sparkling in her eyes at Izzy's thoughtful list of quotations. It had been just the thing she'd needed to cheer her, she'd said.

Despite being in terrible pain, Kristen was impeccably dressed and sitting serenely in her wheelchair when Izzy arrived. Her gold coin earrings and necklace shimmered in the afternoon light. She doted on Izzy, adoring the fact that Izzy had been willing to come and see her at her home even though she was only the wife of Izzy's boss.

Izzy waved her hand at Kris' reservations. She assured the woman that she loved her company as much as Kristen loved hers. If there was anything she could ever do for her, even if it was only listening patiently while Kristen talked, then she'd be glad to do so.

She told Kris that she knew how lucky she was to have her boss and his wife for friends, especially since she had so few real friends left anymore. She felt lucky indeed to have a boss who was as genuinely good to her as Joe. He was a far cry from the number of employers Izzy had when she had waitressed in college.

They had spent the afternoon lounging on the overstuffed, white sofa in the elegantly furnished living room, lunching on Chinese takeaway and stale fortune cookies, while watching old Hollywood movies. Izzy swirled the last of her chow mein noodles on her fork as _Casablanca_ played on the widescreen TV in the background.

"Thanks for having me over, Joe. I mean it. You both have become my second parents after a fashion. I dunno what I'd do without you guys." Joe simply grunted and nodded in response as his mouth was full of what remained of the fried rice and orange chicken.

"He means your most welcome, Isabel," Kris translated for him. Joe nodded again to acknowledge that she was correct in translation. Kris smiled and patted Izzy's hand.

"We both love you too. Joe and I were never able to have children and adoption just didn't suit us. We've grown quite fond of you, dear. You're the daughter I always wanted." She paused and smiled sweetly at Izzy. "Now let me see those _gorgeous_ bangles of yours." She winked at Izzy and held her hand out for Izzy's wrist.

Izzy had entirely forgotten that she was wearing her beloved bangles. The bracelets were visible from under the edges of her jacket sleeves. She held her arms out to show off her bejeweled wrists to Kris.

Kristen didn't comment. She simply raised one eyebrow admiring the jeweled, platinum bracelets in silence. "Now tell me dear… who is the young man who gave you such an extravagant gift? Tell me about your fiancé." The woman looked pointedly at Izzy.

Izzy nearly choked on her noodles. She stared open mouthed at Kristen, before looking slowly over at her boss. How had she known that they weren't simply bangle bracelets, but something more? Joe was watching the exchange with a smile on his face. He put an arm around his wife and winked at Izzy. He seemed to know something too, but not in the way that his wife appeared to.

"You see, my dear," Kristen spoke slowly and precisely, her slight accent betraying her upper crust Boston upbringing. "I am what you might call… a witch. But that isn't the correct term. I do _not_ believe in Wicca, nor do I practice magic of any kind. But I have always had a certain… _gift,_ I guess you could say.

Since I was a small girl I've had the ability to see what others could not. I am no fortune teller. I cannot see the future, but what I can see are remnants of the other worldly, the supernatural. I can tell a person's intentions upon meeting them for the first time, as I did Joe. I knew when he shook my hand the first time we met that he was the man I was going to marry.

Just as I knew you were special the moment I first saw you applying for the job at the company just after you graduated from college three years ago. It was I who told Joe to hire you. I suppose it is what one would call the gift of second sight?

Now… tell me about your fiancé, unless you are uncomfortable, dear. If you prefer we can continue this conversation another time."

Izzy had listened to the old woman's speech in shocked silence. She cocked her head to one side in quiet contemplation. Something told her that Kristen was trustworthy and Izzy's curiosity was aroused. She wanted to know if Kris knew anything about Jareth's world, or about the curious note Signora Venti had left her last night. But first thing was first.

Over the course of the next two hours Izzy had poured her heart out to Kris and Joe. She told them of her encounters with Jareth, the Goblin King over the years, to which neither of them had seemed surprised in the least. She recounted the visions Jareth had showed her of him keeping vigil over as a child.

He'd been always in the shadows, waiting, protecting her from harm. But the one thing he had not been able to prevent was the death of her family. Izzy told Kris how she knew it ate at him, that he was unable to erase her pain. He'd tried so desperately to take it upon himself, to shield her from heartbreak. He alone knew how deep her grief and loneliness had been. Though he had not said so, Izzy had the feeling that Jareth too, had been lost in such loneliness for the last 1300 years.

Throughout the course of her story Kris and Joe had listened patiently with looks of understanding and love. Izzy came to the morning that Jareth had proposed. She retold the tale of the magical bracelets that granted her immortality as long as she wore them.

She paused as she told them how passionately he'd kissed her when she'd relinquished to marry him, but then he had disappeared, leaving her alone. Izzy couldn't help but smile at this point when Joe leaned over to kiss his wife on top of her head. Kris squeezed his hand and rested her head against his shoulder.

The conversation had fallen to silence as Izzy and the loving couple were each lost in their own thoughts. The iconic lines of the 1924 film, _Casablanca_ coming from the TV captured their attention:

"_You're saying this only to make me go". Ilsa pleaded with Rick._

_"I'm saying it because it's true. Inside of us, we both know you belong with Victor. You're part of his work, the thing that keeps him going. If that plane leaves the ground and you're not with him, you'll regret it. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but _soon_ and for the rest of your life. _

_Startled, Ilsa inquired, "But what about us?" _

_"We'll always have Paris. We didn't have… we…we lost it until you came to Casablanca. We got it back last night, Rick answered her." _

_"When I said I would never leave you." Elsa gazed lovingly at Rick. _

_"And you never will," Rick continued sincerely. "But I've got a job to do, too. Where I'm going, you can't follow. What I've got to do, you can't be any part of. Ilsa, I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. Someday you'll understand that". Ilsa lowered her head and began to cry. _

_"Now, now..."Rick gently placed his hand under her chin and raised it so their eyes met. "Here's looking at you kid."_

Izzy watched Kris and Joe for a moment. Their eyes were filled with tears as they sat absorbed in the classic film. _Such hopeless, romantic schmaltz_, Izzy mused. She supposed if anyone had seen her and Jareth together that'd say the same thing. It was funny really.

Her attention was pulled back to the movie as Rick exclaimed,

"_Louis, I think this the beginning of a beautiful friendship." He and Louis strolled off into the fog after watching Ilsa and Vicor Lazlo's plane depart. _

As the credits rolled, silence returned to the living room. It was Kris who broke the silence. "I've always loved that movie. But Humphrey Bogart was never the most attractive man for the part for such an iconic role, I always thought. But of course Ingrid Bergman is just flawless."

Izzy sat up remembering the note Mrs. Venti had written. She abruptly changed the subject from _Casablanca_.

"Kris, what do you know of any Italian folktales? Or more specifically what do you know about goblin legends of Tuscany?"

Joe and Kristen looked at her with puzzled expressions, waiting for Izzy to continue with an explanation.

"You see, Signor and Signora Venti, the elderly Italian couple that own the vegetable market below my loft? Kris and Joe nodded while Izzy continued.

"I stopped to chat with them yesterday morning and from snippets of their conversation I caught the word, _folletto_. I looked it up. It means goblin. And then I caught Signora Venti spying on me as I got out of my cab last night on my way home. She left me a note under the apartment door telling me the she knew Jareth was magic from an enchanted place. She seemed to feel she had to warn me that I could possibly be in danger. What does it all mean?"

Kris was silent in thought for a moment.

"The sun is setting, love. Why don't we take our conversation out on the deck to watch the sunset?" Joe cut in. Kris nodded silently, continuing to think.

Joe wheeled his wife's wheel chair through the double French doors out onto the deck, overlooking the backyard swimming pool. Izzy followed. Streaks of cotton candy colors blazed across the sky. A glowing orange ball of fire in the center, the setting sun, gave the appearance that it was sinking into the swimming pool. The blue, chlorine water sparkled in the light, casting a serene glow up onto the deck as the trio sat at under the large umbrella at the outdoor table and benches.

"I take it that Signora Venti is originally from Tuscany?" Kris asked. Izzy nodded. Kris looked pointedly at Izzy, then back up the sunset.

"I do know of a few legends of the area. It would seem that Mrs. Venti has been raised on them, which of course is why she recognized Jareth for what he was right off the bat even though he is human in every respect."

Izzy had forgotten about the strange dream she'd had the night before. She began to tell Kris about climbing after the pink mountain goat, high in the Italian alps. And then the goat being snatched by a mountain goblin out of the thin air, before the goblin appeared in a threatening stance in front of Izzy.

"I do remember one such story," Kris ventured. When I was about 7 or 8, not long after my family discovered I was gifted with the second sight, my grandmother told me a story that has stuck with me ever since. It went something like:

While Saint Pellegrino was praying in a wood, spirits, devils and goblins attacked him. He lifted his cross and escaped in the sky towards the sea, creating a hole in the mountain that since that day was called Pania Forata, or _drilling hole_.

The story refers to Mount Forato in the Italian alps, a treacherous area that to this day has an ominous reputation. Apparently every year hikers go missing in the area. The locals of course say that they were taken by goblins."

She paused. "But who knows if what they say if the truth, or not? I don't think I'd put too much stock into that dream of yours for now, dear Izzy. Chalk it up as only a dream and maybe you can ask your Jareth about it later. Perhaps he'll have the answers."

When Izzy went to bed that night her head was still spinning with unanswered questions.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Nearly two weeks had gone by since Izzy's wonderful afternoon with her boss and his sweet wife, and she still had not heard from Jareth. Izzy buried her worry about him, knowing full well that he was watching her from afar at all times, protecting her as he always had.

He had whispered so in her dreams on more than one occasion in the past two weeks. He had not left her with any knowledge or lack thereof of his realm, or what Signora Venti was really up to. She knew that he would answer her many questions in an instant if she asked him, but she chose not to ask. And he chose not to reveal any more or less to Izzy than what she already knew at the present. Izzy supposed he left it up to her to figure out on her own.

Above all, she knew that Jareth had not abandoned her, that he loved her as much as ever. Izzy decided to focus solely on the present. She would not think of what mysteries the future held for her, it only made her anxious to be with Jareth.

Instead, she had made it a point of checking up on Kris whenever Joe had mentioned that his wife was doing poorly. The woman always seemed to brighten, and the pain of her MS lesson whenever she saw Izzy.

Together they had discussed at length the possibilities of Signora Venti's intentions and researched various Tuscan legends of goblins. Still, despite all their research they lacked the answers they both sought.

Joe simply took it all in stride. He smiled and shook his head, going out of his way to avoid the two women when they got together. He'd learned that sticking his nose in where the supernatural was involved only left him drained and vulnerable. That was his wife's department, definitely not his.

Izzy simply observed her boss with amusement. She couldn't blame him for not wanting to mess with something beyond which he had any control or skill. Kris was the gifted one. Joe just went along for the ride.

Izzy sat thinking over these things as she mused over what little research she and Kris had managed to accomplish yesterday afternoon. It had amounted to basically nothing, with the exception of various New Age websites written by people that claimed to have intimate knowledge of the goblin realm.

One site particularly had interested Izzy. She'd been fascinated with one woman's supposed encounter with the Goblin King. The woman, who had chosen to remain anonymous, had called her version of the Goblin King, Jared, rather than Jareth. She described this "Jared" as one who appeared as a handsome human man with dark eyes and thick black hair.

But after "Jared" had spirited the anonymous woman away to his magical, dark realm he had reportedly transformed into a hideous, beast-like creature with claws much like a lion's. The article continued on to portray him as a sadistic murderer who paraded around collecting small, unwanted children from various places to feed upon, though his appetite and lust for blood were never fully satisfied.

Izzy had immediately clicked out of the site in disgust. Obviously, this anonymous lady had never actually met Jareth, but only _wished_ she had.

_Either that, or she once tried to seduce Jareth and he rejected her advances outright, and this webpage was her only means of exacting her revenge on the Goblin King,_ Izzy though sardonically. _Ha! It would be only too like him to do such a thing,_ she mused.

When Jareth wanted something, he got it. When he didn't want something, there was no convincing him otherwise. Plain and simple. A Cheshire cat grin spread over Izzy's face as she sat thinking of him. He was most definitely "one of a kind." And he was hers and hers alone… Sublime.

Somewhere, she imagined, Jareth was laughing at the priceless expression on her usually serene face. He alone knew her every thought. How it must please him that she thought such things about him. She could just imagine his glee as he watched her through one of his crystal orbs, somewhere high in his elegant palace.

The faint sound of singing drifted from up from the apartment below, before the loud beep of the microwave drowned out the singing. It was Mrs. Venti, singing an Italian folk song as she cleaned. Though they had not spoken since Izzy had found the note under her door, she'd caught the elderly lady spying on her in the kitchen window of the Venti's apartment over the vegetable market. It had become a regular occurrence over the past week.

Izzy had begun to count on the fact that every evening on her return from work when the cab dropped her off on the curb Signora Venti would be standing visibly at the window overlooking the road, waiting for Izzy's return. Izzy would pretend not to have seen her, then purposefully glance up at the window, where Mrs. Venti would promptly disappear from sight, thinking she'd remained unseen.

Izzy knew the woman was probably keeping an eye (and ear) out in case Izzy should venture out of her apartment this evening as well. _Well, no such luck tonight, Signora. I'm not going anywhere. I'm gonna sit on my couch and watch movies 'til I fall asleep, so good luck at attempting to spy on me tonight. _

Izzy had come home from work an hour ago, feeling simply awful. She hoped she wasn't coming down with a head cold. She heated up some leftover curry broth from last night's dinner in the microwave and sat down to watch _Labyrinth_.

The DVD was the first thing Izzy grabbed at random from the cabinet of DVD's and CD's on which her small, flat-panel television rested. It was just as well. She missed Jareth something fierce tonight and hoped watching her favorite childhood movie would be a comfort, if not at least nostalgic. Besides, she realized, she hadn't watched the film in years.

The movie was little more than halfway through by the time she finished her soup. She was sprawled out on the sofa, covered in a soft plush throw, the empty bowl and spoon resting on the floor next to the white, un-upholstered sofa. "Movie" Jareth and Sarah danced and stared into each other's eyes, while _"As the World Falls Down"_ played softly in the background.

It was this scene that had made Izzy fall in love with the movie in the first place. She loved David Bowie's voice and the looks on the dancing couple's faces as they stared into each other eyes. As far as she was concerned the rest of the movie was an excuse to put David Bowie on the movie screen. Even at the age of 39, with the beginnings of crow's feet around his eyes, Bowie was sexy.

"_Every thrill has gone, wasn't too much fun at all__.__ But I'll be there for you..ooh, ooh…"_ Bowie sang. And suddenly there were two voices singing the song. One was Bowie's, coming from the TV screen, while the second was coming from behind her in the room.

"As the world falls doooooowwn," the voice sang along with the television. Izzy smiled but did not turn around. She knew exactly whose voice it was, and it was slightly off key.

She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the back of the couch. Gentle hands brushed her long hair back from her neck, soft lips placed a kiss in the curve of her throat. She sighed and opened her eyes to see Jareth peering down at her on the sofa from where he stood just behind the couch.

"Hello, darling. Miss me?" Jareth grinned. "How can you watch this _dribble_?" He drew out the last word in a long breath.

Izzy smiled. "How can you call it dribble when it's about you?"

Jareth laughed loudy. "Ah so it is… It's also the most expensive practical joke the goblins and I have ever played on the human world…. Just look at that _hideous _eye shadow he's wearing! It takes up nearly half his face. In the beginning of the film it's purple, halfway through it's the palest blue, and toward the end it's tan! And don't even get me started on the thick layer of lip gloss." He laughed again, winked at Izzy, and kissed her lips.

She playfully pushed him away. "What d'you mean the most expensive _joke? _You've succeeded in goading my curiosity. Now _spill_!" She demanded an explanation with a teasing glint in her eye.

Jareth laughed again, a rich, hearty laugh. "Oh… back when I was bored and stupid, with nothing better to do, one of my… shall we say, "friends," decided to make a small wager. He bet me 500 of his favorite slaves that I couldn't expose the secrets of the Forbidden Realm to the human world without the humans being aware of it. Obviously I won the bet, because here you sit watching the results of my efforts." He grinned widely, waiting for Izzy to ask him to elaborate.

Izzy simply looked at him, with eyebrow raised expectantly. "Oh?"

Jareth sat down next to her on the sofa, picking up her blanketed feet and placing them in his lap so as to keep her comfortable. With one arm around her shoulders he played with a piece of her hair in between his fingers.

"Oh, don't worry. I promptly set the slaves free. They all live and work in the Goblin City now." He said this with a god-like air of boredom, as though it were common knowledge.

"I meant about the _joke,_" Izzy quipped. He was toying with her. She knew he knew fully well what she had meant. He had that mischievous glint in his eye.

"Oh that… ya see, Ladon never expected me to not only reveal the secrets of the Forbidden Realm, but to immortalize myself and the Goblin Kingdom on the big screen as well. Let me tell you…" He chuckled, "He was not happy in the least." He smiled a broad smile. "It was one of my happiest times in all my 1300 years as King, watching Ladon admit defeat.

See the goblins and I had sat up for nights studying various humans and devising ways to win our little bet, when I got the idea to whisper secrets of the Goblin Kingdom to Jim Henson in a dream. Of course I did the same to George Lucas. Went out of my way to make up a plot involving a girl's quest through the Labyrinth, describing the Forbidden Realm, the goblins and myself in detail.

And Bowie doesn't even look anything like me, despite the fact that I _distinctly_ described myself to Mr. Lucas and Mr. Henson," he sneered. Now that Izzy could see the real Jareth next to his screen counterpart they really did look nothing alike she agreed.

And if you think that's bad, wait 'til you compare the real Forbidden Realm with the screen version." He laughed again. "There's no comparison! But of course you know movie directors, always taking liberties with history…"

_History?_ The thought that the movie _Labyrinth_ was old history in Jareth's world was ludicrous.

"And of course they were the laughing stocks of Hollywood." Jareth continued, "No one ever thought that the great George Lucas, creator of _Star Wars_ would stoop to produce a film that involved Jim Henson's puppets. Ha! ...It was the biggest commercial flop of 1986, but in the Forbidden Realm it was the joke of the century."

Izzy listened to the tirade, suppressing a giggle. She simply watched Jareth with the slightest of smirks at her mouth. "And to think it's considered a "cult classic" film now thanks to fans such as yourself."

He gestured toward Izzy with a wink and grin. "I can't believe you like this! Couldn't believe it when I watched you obsessing over it when you were nine. But this… this is just… _subpar_." He emphasized the last word in his English accent with utter contempt, yet his eyes were shining with teasing laughter.

Izzy cracked. She'd held off the giggles as long as she could. She collapsed in a fit of laughter and threw her arms around him, covering Jareth with kisses, which he eagerly accepted. Izzy felt his fingers entangle themselves in her hair as he passionately returned her kisses.

* * *

><p>Nearly 20 minutes later, they lay in each other's arms on the couch, covered in Izzy's plush blanket, their clothes scattered on the floor. The last few minutes of the movie continued.<p>

The screen version of Jareth watched the girl while he sang, _"Everything I've done, I've done for YOU! …I move the stars for no one."_

"Toby!" Sarah cried on the television screen as she ran after her baby brother, crawling over staircases that led nowhere.

"Doesn't it strike you as odd that David Bowie was nearly 40 years old when he acted in this flick, but his love interest is only 15?" Jareth asked sincerely, looking down at Izzy, as she lay back against his chest while the two of them watched the movie.

At this Izzy craned her neck to look up at him and cracked up laughing. "Thinking he robbed the cradle, Jareth," Izzy cracked. "Sounds a bit familiar doesn't it?" She laughed all the harder as she teased him.

"And that's coming from the 1,300 year old Goblin King, who's had his eye on me since I was two!" Izzy laughed until her sides ached.

"Actually, I'm 1,332. I was 32 years old when I was crowned King, and that's the age I've been ever since. You're 25. Seven years isn't that big of an age difference…"

"Yeah, if you don't count the 1300 years you've been immortal!" Izzy cut him off. She grinned and craned around to kiss Jareth. "But so what if you _did_ rob the cradle, baby. I'll follow you to hell and back to be with you…"

* * *

><p><strong>***Author's Note:<strong> I was waiting on my Beta Reader to edit chapter 12 before I posted it, but decided to post it anyway. I promise I haven't abandoned, not forgotten my little story here. I have soo much more fun ideas in store for Izzy, but since classes and work have taken precedence over my writing I'm only part way thru chapter 13 at the moment. I will finish it and post ASAP. Hang in there with me please. (Btw, If any of you have ideas for the story I'd love to hear them)! Thanks.


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